Climate Change Committee

We are recruiting a policy intern to provide analytical support to better understand cross-sectoral cascading risk arising from electrical disruption. The analysis will be used to inform the UK’s Fourth Independent Assessment of Climate Risk (CCRA4-IA). For more information and to apply - https://lnkd.in/eE3-kqB

Our latest progress report has been published today and sets out the Committee’s assessment of how well we are delivering against our legal targets. We are off track for our 2030 target. Only one third of emissions reductions required to meet this target are assessed as credible. This will need to change quickly. Ambitious action is needed beyond electricity, in buildings, industry and transport. Technologies such as electric vehicles, heat pumps and renewables must become the norm for the UK to get back on track. The report today sets out 10 priority recommendations. - Make electricity cheaper. - Reverse recent policy rollbacks. - Remove planning barriers for heat pumps and electric vehicle charge points. - Introduce a comprehensive programme for decarbonisation of public sector buildings. - Effectively design and implement the upcoming renewable energy CfD auctions. - Accelerate electrification of industrial heat. - Ramp up tree planting and peatland restoration. - Finalise business models for large-scale deployment of engineered removals. - Publish a strategy to support skills. - Strengthen NAP3. Watch our explainer video - https://lnkd.in/eBF5SAMd

We’ve delayed our Progress Report due to the dissolution of Parliament. A new date will be announced after the election.

The CCC has now started the Independent Assessment of UK Climate Risk that will underpin the UK’s Fourth Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA4). Understanding the risks from climate change and the potential for adaptation to address them is vital. We are leading the next independent assessment of this to be published in 2026. Read and watch an explanation of our plans on the CCRA4-IA here: https://lnkd.in/eYCFjzhN To inform the Independent Assessment of UK Climate Risk that will underpin the UK’s Fourth Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA4) we are also seeking your evidence and information on climate risk. We are keen to understand where the risks have changed or where new evidence is now available in order to build on previous assessments to inform the production of CCRA4-IA. The call for evidence can be found within the engagement section of the methodology.

The Committee is starting to prepare its work on the Fourth Climate Change Risk Assessment. As part of this work, we have launched a new research tender which will aim to assess the resilience of cold supply chains in the UK. This analysis will inform the Committee's report for the CCRA4. It will ensure there is a better understanding of how climate change could disrupt the UK's supply of essential goods that rely on a temperature-controlled supply chain. Find out more: https://lnkd.in/ed_F36zC

The Committee is starting to prepare its work on the Fourth Climate Change Risk Assessment. As part of this work, we have launched three research tenders covering water scarcity, heat in the built environment and the health impacts of extreme heat. This analysis will inform a Committee's report for the CCRA4. They will build the UK's understanding of how climate and weather changes interact with critical aspects of society alongside how these growing risks can be effectively managed. Find out more: 1. https://lnkd.in/e5niBZeZ 2. https://lnkd.in/eJp4tkZB 3. https://lnkd.in/erG7sTNU

The Scottish Government has ambitious targets and a welcome focus on the importance of public engagement and a just transition. However, the Committee no longer believes the Scottish Government will meet its statutory 2030 goal to reduce emissions by 75%. Annual targets have been repeatedly missed and the Scottish Government’s draft Climate Change Plan means there is no comprehensive strategy for reaching Net Zero in Scotland. The current policies and plans fall far short of what is needed. Risks remain in all areas with significant policy powers devolved to the Scottish Government (transport, buildings, agriculture, land use and waste). While many of the key indicators of delivery progress such as tree planting, peatland restoration rates and heat pump installations are off track. Ambitious targets require delivery and only three of the 14 key recommendations from the CCC’s 2022 Scottish Progress Report scored ‘good progress’. The Committee’s report makes updated recommendations to turn Scotland’s ambitious targets into effective delivery. More: https://lnkd.in/egx3u7Wd

Today, we have published our initial assessment of the Third National Adaptation Programme (NAP3). Published in July 2023, NAP3 is the UK Government’s statutory plan to ensure the country is prepared for the effects of climate change. It falls far short of what is required. NAP3 lacks the pace and ambition to address growing climate risks, which we are already experiencing in the UK, and fails to set a vision for what a well-adapted UK looks like. This prevents effective delivery. Only 40% of the short-term actions to address urgent risks identified in the last Climate Change Risk Assessment have been taken forward in NAP3. That slow progress shows the current approach is not working. An urgent strengthening of NAP3 is needed. It must improve the delivery of adaptation policy and ensure that adaptation is a fundamental aspect of policy making across all departments that is integrated with other key priorities. The UK Government must ensure the country is prepared for the effects of climate change. We cannot wait another five years for only incremental improvement. https://lnkd.in/eNzFXHX4

The Third Carbon Budget (2018 to 2022) was met with a surplus, assisted by the economy-shrinking effects of the pandemic. Today the Committee has written to Minister Graham Stuart, congratulating the Government for meeting its legal obligations, but advising unequivocally that surplus emissions must not be carried forward to loosen later carbon budgets.  To be on track to meet the UK’s climate targets in the 2030s, and therefore the long-term goal of Net Zero by 2050, emissions reductions will need to significantly speed up. Carry-forward of the full Third Carbon Budget surplus would put the 2030 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) and the Sixth Carbon Budget at very serious risk, taking the UK away from a path of continued progress towards its future legal targets. The Committee’s unequivocal advice is therefore that surplus emissions from the Third Carbon Budget should not be carried forward. We need to build on our success to date by accelerating, not slowing down, emissions reductions in all sectors outside electricity supply.  Future carbon budgets will require an increase in the pace and breadth of decarbonisation. It is essential that an ambitious path of emissions reduction is maintained towards Net Zero.  The Committee’s full assessment of the Third Carbon Budget is available to read on our website now: https://lnkd.in/e8VC2VhH  

We are hiring! We are seeking three new independent members for our Adaptation Committee.   We are looking for three members, with expertise in either the interaction between health and climate change issues, infrastructure, or farming.   The Adaptation Committee advises the UK Government and Devolved Governments on the need to adapt to climate change, and reports to Parliament and each of the devolved legislatures on its evaluation of the government’s climate change adaptation programmes.   As a Committee member you will be responsible for establishing the Committee’s strategic direction and providing impartial input into its work.   Applications close on 17 March 2024. Find out more on the Government public appointments website: https://lnkd.in/derHFqvQ